Statement by Ambassador Liu Zhenmin at 5th Committee of UNGA 61st Session on Item 119: Improving the Financial Situation of the UN

2006/11/09

2006/11/09

Mr. Chairman,

The Chinese delegation would like to begin by thanking the Comptroller Mr. Warren Sach for his presentation of the financial situation of the United Nations for the year of 2006. We associate ourselves with the statement made by South Africa on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

Mr. Chairman,

It is the common view of all member states that in the current complex international situation, the role of the United Nations must be strengthened. Since finance has an important bearing on the ability of the UN to perform its functions as an international organization, a solid, stable, balanced and strong finance is of special significance to the United Nations, especially during the current reform process. Without such a foundation, strengthening the role of the UN in international affairs would only be empty talk. The financial situation of the UN is closely related to the payment by member states of various assessed contributions on time and in full. If member states did not faithfully fulfill their due financial obligations, the UN would not be able to receive contributions from member states in a timely manner, which would result in imbalance between its revenue and expenditure. In that case, the budget of the UN would become a sheer piece of paper with no binding power and there would be no resources to support the activities of the UN. Therefore, the faithful fulfillment by all member states of their respective financial obligations in the form of timely, unconditional and full payment of all assessments constitutes an important guarantee of sufficient resources for the UN.

According to the presentation of the Controller, up until 31Oct, 122 member states have paid off their contributions to the regular budget; 85 member states have paid in full their assessments for the two international tribunals and 24 member states have paid in full their contributions to the peace-keeping budget. These figures show that while many member states have paid off their contributions in a timely manner, there are still some which have not faithfully implemented their financial obligations to the organization up till now.

We have noted that in spite of all kinds of practical difficulties, some member states, especially some developing countries, have tried their very best to fulfill their financial obligations, which merits our appreciation. We hope that the country with the most arrears will also do as other member states did, take practical actions to show that it really attaches importance to the UN by paying all its assessed contributions on time, in full and without conditions, and also pay off all its arrears as is required by the General Assembly.

Like the majority of the member states, China supports the reform measures taken by the Secretary-General to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the UN Secretariat. Member states need to work harder in order to make greater progress on the financial reform of the UN. Meanwhile, the Secretariat should further improve its relevant rules, regulations and systems, reinforce financial discipline, put an end to waste, practice economy, and make effective use of every penny of the contributions of the member states.

Mr. Chairman,

China is still a developing country with low per capital income, which needs large amount of resources input for its economic development. And there is an enormous gap in terms of financial resources in our efforts of eradicating poverty in rural areas and establishing the system for ensuring a minimum standard of living and the system of medical insurance for workers who are laid-off or unemployed. In spite of this, China has paid in full its assessed contribution for 2006 in the amount of 35, 036, 460 US dollars and its assessments of 5, 966, 226 US dollars for the two international tribunals. From Jan.1, 2006 to date, China's peace-keeping assessment will reach 145,714,769 US dollars. We will also pay off as soon as possible our assessment for the CMP of the UN. The total amount of the above four assessments for China exceeds 189 million US dollars. With its practical action, China has made real contributions to a solid financial foundation of the United Nations.

Mr. Chairman,

A strong and stable financial foundation is the basic condition for the UN to fulfill its Charter responsibilities and accomplish its missions. As the UN is going through various reforms, a firm and stable financial foundation is particularly necessary. We call once again on all member states to display positive political will and strong sense of responsibility, effectively fulfill their financial obligations as enshrined in the UN Charter in order to enable the UN to better perform its functions.